Batavia Park District issued the following announcement on June 19.
Batavia has long celebrated its history as the city of windmills, but in recent years a new symbol for pride in community has been making a play for the attention of residents and visitors during the summer months. Bulldogs Unleashed adds a highly artistic flourish to the Batavia High School bulldog mascot. The first Bulldogs Unleashed public art project took place the summer of 2011, raising $75,000 for local charity partners: Batavia Foundation for Educational Excellence, Batavia Parks Foundation and the Batavia Public Library Foundation. The three partner foundations have teamed up once again for an encore exhibit.
More than thirty local artists submitted designs to the Bulldogs Unleashed committee in 2017. Each offered themes of local landmarks or inspiring creations such as superheroes or patriotic symbols, to name a few. Following the approval process, committee members secured sponsors for each of the Bulldogs while the artists went to work over a 6-8 week period creating their bulldog masterpieces. The thirty bulldog masterpieces were revealed to the community on June 10 as part of the Batavia Flag Day celebration. The twenty-seven 30” fiberglass bulldogs and three monster 44” bulldogs plus eight legacy bulldogs from 2011 are now positioned around Batavia for the public to view. Maps of the Bulldog locations, listing artists and sponsors, are available at: Batavia City Hall, Batavia Public Library, Batavia Park District and Batavia Public School District. Online location maps are available on the City of Batavia website, QR from your smartphone or go online to http://bit.ly/BulldogsUN to tour the canine collection.
Residents and visitors are encouraged to visit the Bulldogs for photo opportunities and we ask your cooperation in not sitting or “riding” any of the sculptures to help preserve their beauty. Share your photos at the Bulldogs Unleashed Facebook page @BulldogsUN and follow the fun all summer long on Twitter and Instagram.
Additionally, a parade of puppies is headed for this year’s Batavia’s Windmill City Fest July 13-15. Tiny painted pooches are kenneled at City Hall council chambers for the weekend’s fest competing for “Best of Show” titles. The dog show has two divisions: Adult (18 and over) and Child (17 and under) with artists vying for the coveted title, blue ribbon and Bulldogs Unleashed merchandise. Fest-goers vote with their wallet - $1 per ballot cast for their favorite pup with all proceeds benefitting the three Bulldogs Unleashed charities. Entry to the contest is free; the deadline to register is Thursday, July 12 at 11:59 p.m. Information and registration can be found HERE.
After the summer display of Bulldogs concludes, the Bulldogs Unleashed committee hosts an auction of the big dogs on September 15, 2018 at the Eastside Community Center. Auction tickets are available at www.bulldogsunleashed.org, the official website of Bulldogs Unleashed.
Tabletop Foster dogs are on display at the following businesses: K. Hollis Jewelers, Funway, Batavia Family Dental, Chapters Coffee House, Beardsgaard Barbers, Urban Style Salon and Spa, All Spoked Up, J DeCarlo Salon and Spa, Kiss the Sky, and The Tea Tree. Raffle tickets can be purchased at any of these locations, Farmers Market Bulldogs Unleashed tent - last Saturday of the Month, Windmill City Fest, and on the Bulldogs Unleashed website. These 10 - 17" tabletop dogs will be raffled at the September 15th Auction event, but one need not be present to win. Grab a passport at any of the ten locations, get them all stamped and enter a free raffle to win a Bulldogs basket. Bulldogs Unleashed is a public art display that enlightens, entertains, and brightens Batavia now through Labor Day. At the same time the beloved mascots provide financial resources to important community foundations, support the local arts community and provide doggone fun for the citizens of Batavia. Invite your friends and family to town to find all the Bulldogs and enjoy the hospitality of Batavia.
Original source can be found here.
Alerts Sign-up